Volunteers and members of the Civil Defense, supported by army helicopters, fought Wednesday to put out a fire in northern Lebanon that broke out in the largest wild pine forest in the country and region, officials do not rule out that it was staged.
The army command announced on Twitter that “helicopters belonging to the Lebanese army, with the support of military units, are participating in operations to extinguish the fire that broke out last night in the forests of Batramaz Denia to prevent its spread. Interim Government Environment Minister Nasser Yassin, who traveled to the scene of the fire on Wednesday morning, did not rule out that the fire was staged, citing investigations carried out by the security forces on the matter. In a press statement, he said his country would inform the Cypriot government of the possibility ask for his support if the fire develops. Photos posted by Yasin and environmental activists on social media show clouds of smoke rising Tuesday afternoon from three spots in the forest before an intense fire broke out.
“It is possible that the fire was staged, as can be seen in the photo taken before sunset,” Yasin said, calling on “security forces to act and the courts to be strict in punishing those who set fires.” On Tuesday, due to fog, army helicopters were unable to extinguish the fire. Volunteers from the area fought the fire with shovels and primitive methods due to the rugged terrain, which is known for its dense trees. Activists have expressed fear that the fires will destroy large areas of the forest. “The largest wild pine forest in the Middle East is on fire right now,” environmental activist Paul Abirached wrote on Facebook on Tuesday. Lebanon witnesses annual outbreaks of fires in its forests, and stakeholders struggle to put them out as human and technical resources are dwindling. A boy died at least a year ago while fighting a fire that broke out on the outskirts of his village in the north of the country. In October 2019, huge fires engulfed large areas of forest and locked civilians in their homes amid the inability of the authorities, backed by several countries, to put them out, which the Lebanese at the time saw as further evidence of the neglect of the authorities. and incompetence. These fires caused widespread outrage and even became one of the reasons for the unprecedented popular protests that Lebanon witnessed on October 17, 2019 against the political class.
